April 20, 2011

Girasole #2

My second Girasole, and hopefully not the last. This is one of my all time favorite knitting patterns. It looks more complicated than it is; it has just the right amount of challenge while still being something you can knit while watching TV, for example. And the end result is gratifying, as well. I regularly use the first Girasole I knit over two years ago, and it's also one of my projects with the most favorites on Ravelry.

Since the yarn and pattern combination worked so well the last time, I took the safe route and used the same yarn, Ohut Pirkkalanka by Pirkanmaan Kotityö Oy, again, just in a different color. This seems to be a great yarn for larger shawls that have some weight to them. On smaller shawls it doesn't have quite enough drape for my taste, but for this one it's perfect, and very durable, as my first Girasole is barely showing any signs of wear despite frequent use.

The needles I used for the majority of the project, Signature Needle Arts circulars in size 3.75 mm, were very enjoyable to use. My least favorite part, just like the last time, was the edging, but it was still faster than I remembered. It took me just under three weeks of very leisurely knitting for the whole shawl, and the past few days were spent on the edging. Overall, totally worth it.

I've looked at that pattern for ages, thinking about knitting it. Yours is so beautiful. I'm glad to hear it' sort of the perfect kind of project - challenging enough, but you can watch T.V. and work on it.

Utterly gorgeous! The colour looks amazing on you, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as your first one. They are for different moods, or perhaps one for winter, one for summer?The pattern is lovely, Jared Flood knows what he's doing. I am really fond of his Juneberry triangle, I was so excited when it was finally published for download.I like your point about how the yarn drapes in shawls of different sizes. I wish I could get a similar yarn to this here in the UK.